When the man known among his peers as “The Prince of Darkness” died yesterday at the age of 82, he hadn’t worked on a film since 1997’s The Devil’s Own. But if anything, his stature only increased over the years.

The nickname came from his abundant and expert use of shadows, of using as little light as possible to enhance his directors’ visions. He, too, pioneered the then-controversial technique of casting actors’ eyes in darkness as a subtle cue toward their characters’ inner secrets. And even beyond the sepia tones he mastered while working with Francis Ford Coppola on the Godfather films or the sumptuous black-and-white images he provided over the course of several movies for Woody Allen, he often created a dreamlike quality that was neither nostalgic nor old-fashioned.

Despite lack of love from the Academy or the American Society of Cinematographers (again, one nomination – The Godfather, Part III – and one honorary win), Willis was as influential on movies as many directors throughout the last half century. Countless things you love and remember from the list of movies above came directly from him. As current ACA president Richard Crudo said in a statement to Deadline on Sunday, “This is a momentous loss. He was one of the giants who absolutely changed the way movies looked … and the way people looked at films.”

Here’s what Willis himself had to say about his work on The Godfather films, along with some examples:

And then watch the iconic opening sequence from Manhattan, accompanied, of course, by one of the greatest pieces of music ever written, George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue.”

CJ Lais

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